Linking Families During the Holidays

If anyone ever said Santa Claus couldn’t make it to Iraq, they lied. Albeit he had the help of the U.S. Marines at his call.

The Postal Marines of 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward) make sure mail and packages from families, friends and even some labeled as from the jolly one himself get to their intended destinations.

The Marines sort, process and deliver mail to units and forward operating bases throughout the area of operations. They also provide a full-service post office, allowing servicemembers to mail packages and purchase money orders.

During the holiday season, Multi-National Forces-West postal operations centers in Al Asad and Al Taqaddum processed 180,000-200,000 pounds of mail daily, according to Gunnery Sgt. Lionel A. Saulsberry, the postal operations chief with Service Company, 2nd MLG (Fwd).

“We allow family members to get in touch with their servicemembers over here,” said the Youngstown, Ohio, native. “A lot of times, Marines can’t call home everyday. We provide a source of morale for those individuals out there.”

The only other time the mail volume comes close to rivaling the holiday season is when units are redeploying to the states, he added, citing that many Marines send some of their personal effects home to alleviate the weight of gear they have to carry.

According to Chief Warrant Officer 3 James E. Clark, the postal operations officer for Service Company, 2nd MLG (Fwd), a record-breaking 258,000 pounds of mail was processed by MNF-W on Dec. 13 alone, bringing the total mail volume of the year to a staggering 28 million pounds.

Clark, a Kenosha, Wis., native, attributed the large increase of mail volumes to troop surge units. He said postal operations did not even need to increase it’s manpower from his last deployment in 2005 to handle the feat.

“The Marines here have been working extremely hard this year. They stay up late working just to get up early in the morning to do it again,” he said.

Although the postal Marines are deployed and away from home during the holidays too, Lance Cpl. SirJames Jenkins, a postal clerk with Service Company, 2nd MLG (Fwd), said knowing he plays a direct role linking deployed troops and their families reinforces the importance of his job.

“We’re making people happy,” explained the Sacramento, Calif., native. “I try to look at the better side of things.”

Clark said receiving and sending mail is important for all servicemembers throughout the year and especially during the Christmas season.

“We give the other servicemembers that quality of life or support by getting them information from home and keeping them focused on the mission,” he said. “We are the link between the servicemembers and their families back home.”